Since biblical times, wine has been produced, consumed and enjoyed by people all over the world. Wine is produced from one or more varieties of grapes which grow in well-known regions all over the world. During wine production, the grapes are crushed and the juice is usually stored for a period of time, sometimes many years, during which the wine ferments and the flavor, color, texture and aroma develop. After a period of time, the wine may be ready for bottling, sale and consumption.
For many centuries, wine has been stored and contained in glass bottles of various sizes and sealed with a variety of closure means such as rubber stoppers or cork. Oftentimes, wine bottles are extremely elaborate, thus adding to the attraction of the wine.
To retain the freshness, flavor and aroma of the wine, it is essential that the bottle be tightly sealed to prevent oxygen from seeping in. Most wines produced today are sealed with a cork closure and are often covered with a decorative foil capsule. Corks, however, often allow oxidation to take place, as they are easily broken or crumbled. As a result of a defective cork, oxidation results in "corkiness" which is characterized by a pungent smell, much like that which emanates from rotting newspapers, and which damages the wine rendering it unfit for sale or consumption. Additionally, oxidation resulting from defective corks affect 5% of all cork-finished wines, amounting to millions of defective bottles a year which costs the industry and consumers million of dollars a year in unsaleable and inconsumable goods. Furthermore, if a wine which was sealed with a cork is not consumed within a relatively short period of time after the cork has been removed, it tends to become flat and loses its taste.
Aluminum or plastic screw caps which are matingly threaded to external threads on the neck of the bottle and which are similar to those used on soda bottles, have been found to be the best closure for wine bottles, having a nearly perfect record of maintaining the quality of wine inside the bottle and eliminating any chance of oxygen seeping in. In fact, many lower quality, inexpensive wines currently use screw caps. As a result, the screw cap has become synonymous with cheap wine and, despite their superior closure capabilities, have been shunned by today's producers of the better wines who, in an effort to provide more attractive bottling, have widened the opening of the wine bottles, eliminated the foil capsule and sealed the top of the cork with a drop of bee's wax. It provides for an attractive bottle, but does not eliminate the problem of defective corks.
The prior art includes internally threaded bottles or receptacles, such as U.S. Pat. No. 1,415,908 for a jar closure, U.S. Pat. No. 2,026,304 directed to a container and closure therefor, and U.S. Pat. No. 2,820,671 which teaches a method of distributing soil treating material. However, none of these references are directed to bottles or containers for holding wine. Additionally, each of these prior art references teach internal threads disposed in the neck portion of the bottle or container proximate the opening. These prior art container with internal threads positioned proximate the opening of the bottle discourage their use for containing wine since the internal threads positioned proximate the bottle's opening detracts from the bottle's ability to provide a smooth and consistent pour of wine. If used for containing wine, these prior art bottles lead to a waste of the wine as the internally disposed threads proximate the opening causes the wine to haphazardly splash out of the bottle as it is being poured therefrom.
Accordingly, there is a need for a glass bottle for containing wines and which is configured to accommodate a screw top, the combination of the bottle and screw top which is attractive, which assures a smooth consistent pour, and which ensures the quality of wine contained within the bottle.